[kostohryz08]

I have a goldendoodle and would like to start grooming her at home instead of taking her to a professional groomer. What type of clipper would people recommend? I have looked on the internet and talked to a sales person at a animal health store and have been looking at the Oster Golden A5 or the Oster Turbo A5. Are these good clippers or would people recommend something else. I did try and groom her myself last time but I used a friends Andis single speed clipper with a #10 blade and 1/2" guard. The blade was always clogging up and didn't even go thru some of the thicker hair on her back. Can people please reccomend what clipper and blade for grooming my goldendoodle.
Thanks
Dave

[poodleholic]

Hey Dave,

I have two Standard Poodles, and groom them myself. I have an Andis UltraEdge 2 speed, and also a Wahl Arco Moser cordless trimmer, the latter used for bare-to-the-skin FFT (face, feet, base of tail). I chose the Andis because of feedback from other Poodle people who have used the Osters and others. I really like it.

A #10F blade is typically used for face, feet, base of tail, and tummy. The higher the number, the shorter/closer the clip. A #7F blade is really short, so you might want to do the body with a #5F (1/4") or a #4F blade on the body, and then scissor the legs, if you want that hair left longer.

A really great DVD showing how to use the equipment, which blade to use, and excellent visual of the actual clipping is available from Muddy Creek Grooming for around $35. I don't know the person who made the video and have no affiliation of any kind - I recommend it because it made a world of difference in my grooming skills (or lack thereof! LOL). It will show you how to blend longer leg hair with a short body, how to bevel the hair on legs above the feet (if you shave the feet) and the tail itself, how to do the feet, face, neck, topknot, and so on. After watching it only once, the difference in my grooming was just amazing! They looked like they had just come from a professional groomer!

I don't know what type of clip you want to do on your dog, or what the coat is like. Doodles have very different hair texture than Poodles do, plus, some are curly, some are wavy, and some have a combination of wave and curl, so that will dictate the clip and blade you use. If you want the sporting clip (or so-called hunting clip), you could use the #4F or #5F blade on body and legs. Does your dog have a top knot with a clean face, or clipped close to the head with a beard or mustache?

You're also going to need shears and a HV dryer (high velocity).

[kostohryz08]

Thanks for the information.
My godlendoodle's hair before we had her first groomed was more wavy but since she got groomed it more curly than wavy. I would like to keep her hair about 1/2" long and like to keep the hair around the face and head a little bit longer. I will look into the Andis clipper that you have and check out the dvd. The video shoud help since I am new to animal grooming.
Thanks again.